Taiwan is an indispensable member of the international community in ensuring global health security, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, pointing to increasing support for Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly (WHA).
The annual meeting of the decisionmaking body of the WHO was held from Monday through yesterday, but due to pressure from China, Taiwan was not invited to attend as an observer for the eighth year in a row.
Although it was regretful that Taiwan could not attend the meeting, the nation’s years of efforts were apparent in the strong international support it received this year, Lai said while meeting with the WHA Action Team at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
Photo: CNA
He thanked the team of health officials and experts for striving for better health and human rights for Taiwan and the world.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) led the delegation to attend meetings on the sidelines of the WHA in Geneva, Switzerland, with the aim of gaining international recognition and support.
The team this year attended 43 bilateral meetings, and more countries voiced support for Taiwan’s WHA bid this year, Chiu said.
Upon returning to Taiwan, Chiu and officials yesterday held a news conference in Taipei to report on the team’s accomplishments in Geneva.
Health ministers from some of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — including Belize, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia and the Marshall Islands — debated with China, arguing that Taiwan should be allowed to participate as an observer, but the WHO refused to include the proposal on the agenda, Chiu said.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare expresses deep regret and discontent regarding the WHO’s decision, he said.
The delegation on Monday submitted a letter to the WHO Secretariat protesting its decision and expressing Taiwan’s determination to strive for international participation, he said.
At this year’s WHA, 26 diplomatic allies and like-minded countries voiced support for Taiwan, more support than in previous years, he said.
The team met with more high-ranking health officials than in previous years, including from Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, as well as Australia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Lithuania, the US and several important international organizations, Chiu said.
The cooperation and exchanges discussed in the meetings was also more substantial, involving National Health Insurance, infectious disease prevention, health promotion, cancer prevention, mental health, healthcare professionals’ training and other issues, he said.
“Taiwan has positively expressed its demand to participate in the WHO and global health affairs, demonstrated the nation’s healthcare soft power and held several professional forums in Geneva,” he said.
“It is a shame that Taiwan, being a top student, is not allowed to enter the class and share its knowledge and expertise with its global classmates,” Chiu said, adding that excluding Taiwan from the WHA not only affects the right of Taiwanese to health, but is also a huge loss to the international community.
The combined efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, lawmakers, healthcare professionals, non-governmental groups, youth groups and overseas Taiwanese, are each small successes that would contribute to the eventual big success of WHA participation, he said.
Additional reporting by Su Yong-yao
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